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The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region is located in southern China, bordered by YunNan Province to the
west, GuiZhou to the north, HuNan to the northeast, and GuangDong to the southeast, and by VietNam and the BeiBu Bay to
the south-west.
It covers an area of 236,661
square kilometres, and measures over 770 kilometres from east to west and 610 kilometres from north to south. NanNing,
the regional capital, is about 75 miles southwest of the region's geographic centre.
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History: GuangXi was known as the land of BaiYue during the late Zhou Dynasty from 453-221 BC. The
ancestors of the Zhuang people inhabited the region with an economy based on rice. East GuangXi was occupied by Han
people in 214 BC under the Qin dynasty, and the LingQu Canal was dug to link the XiangJiang River and GuiJiang River to
form a north-south waterway.
Climate:
Throughout the region, temperatures are sufficiently warm enough year round agricultural production throughout the year.
The summer, covering a seven-month period from April to
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Guilin at peace |
October, is marked by crop-promoting heat accompanied by high humidity. Winter is mild and snow - rare.
July temperatures vary between 27ºC - 32ºC, while January temperatures range between 4ºC - 16ºC. The north experiences
slightly cooler temperatures than the south.
Because of the influence of the rain-bearing monsoon wind, which blows from the south and southwest from late April to
the end of September, precipitation is abundant; the drier areas are in the northwest, and the wetter areas in the south
and east. The average annual rainfall varies from 9000 millimetres in the drier areas to 17,500 millimetres in the
wetter zones. Most of the precipitation occurs in the period between May and August. In the extreme south, rain bursts
caused by typhoons occur between November and February.
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Zhuang in traditional costume |
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Ethnic groups: The Zhuang live largely in the western two-thirds of the region, while the Han are
concentrated in the eastern third. Two distinct Chinese linguistic influences are noted, a southwest dialect of Mandarin
is spoken in the north, including GuiLin and LiuZhou districts while the Cantonese dialect is spoken throughout the
south of the region. The Yao, Miao, and Dong people are widely scattered.
The Zhuang people have inhabited GuangXi since ancient times. Living on the plains and in the
river valleys of the hilly west, they cultivate rice in paddy fields and practice an economy that easily merges with
that of the Han people. They are often referred to as ‘water dwellers’ because their settlements are close to water and
their dwellings are constructed on piles or stilts. For two millennia, the Zhang have coexisted with the Han; together
they constitute the two largest ethnic groups in GuangXi.
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Tourism: The picturesque scenic spots in Guangxi are famous worldwide, symbolized by Guilin, a
natural beauty produced by unique karst geography.
At
present, the province has established several tourist attractions including three state-level natural scenic spots, 11
state-level forest parks, 30 regional natural scenic spots, 15 state-level cultural and historical relics, 221 regional
cultural and historical relics and one state-level tourist resort in Beihai City.
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